The Marriage Issue
by TurtleWriter17
Summary: During an erratic season of wedding planning (jammed with rings, dresses and impromptu vows), bride to be Ally Dawson inevitably experiences cold feet. Paired with a rather large family feud and a rather hellish Mother in Law, naturally, falling for the charming best man was the easiest thing to do. Short AU Multi-Chap :)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi Everyone, hope you're all doing okay. I've decided to take full advantage of my summer holiday (Praise the lord it finally came, I was so close to jumping out a window) and write some stories on here. I've had this idea in my head for a while and I've read some stories with a similar plot, so I decided to try my own version. I don't know why but I've always loved the concept of Ally falling in love with her boyfriend's best friend. It's kind of a twist on the best friend's brother or best friend's boyfriend dilemma. Anyway, I think I talk (or rather type) way too much on these author's notes so I'm just gonna shut up and let you read. Enjoy :)**

"HE WHAT?!"

"Trish...calm down. He just proposed it's no big dea-"

"ARE YOU INSANE?! Ally, I think this is a pretty big deal. _Why_ are you just telling me now? I thought we told each other everything. Don't you love me anymo..."

An exasperated sigh escaped the taller brunette's mouth as she continued to take in the persistent rambling of her best friend, who had just been informed of her engagement during their fortnightly sleepover. Well, _adult_ sleepover. Just saying 'sleepover' reminded them too much of their high school days, even though they practically still acted the same. They were currently sitting (or in Trish's case spasming) on the large animal print bed in Trish's apartment, discussing the events of the previous evening in which Ally had lost a boyfriend and gained a fiancé. Of course, the fiery Latina had been highly unhappy that she wasn't told milliseconds after it happened.

"Trish...Trish! TRISH!" Said woman halted after a few seconds and looked at her best friend in annoyance.

"Calm down chica, no need to shout," she replied, turning to face the girl properly on the bed and moving a little closer to her. "I just think you should be way more excited about this; you love Peter don't you?" At this, Ally's eyes widened and she nodded vigorously, flailing her arms crazily in the process.

"Of course! Yeah, definitely, It's just..." She paused for few seconds to find a way of properly explaining, "I just feel like, even through there are _so_ many positives, the few negative points of marrying him seem so big and clear, like they're not gonna go away or something. This probably isn't making sense, but do you know what I mean?" A sympathetic nod from the now quiet Trish made Ally smile for a moment in gratitude.

"Sure you're scared, Ally. Everyone has doubts about getting marrie-"

"I know, Trish, but I never thought the doubts would have such an impact on me," She interrupted, before cringing apologetically at Trish's slightly irritated face. She muttered a quick sorry, seeing that her usually brash friend was about to jump into an encouraging and heartfelt speech about marriage, which was nothing short of alien for her. However, instead of the general scolding on how much interruptions made her want to rip someone's head off, Trish gestured for her best friend to continue. "For example, it's so obvious his mom hates me."

"Come on, of course she hates you." Trish's words gained a confused and dramatic mock offended look from the other brunette.

"Oh wow, thanks Trish. That's exactly what I need-"

Chuckling lightly, the Latina replied, "Let me finish, I meant of course she hates you; she's an evil Monster in Law who prays on innocent brides to make herself feel better after all that hellish plastic surgery she's had." Both women burst into a fit of giggles before Ally spoke up again, breathing quite heavily from laughing.

"You're so evil," She smiled, giggling again when the Latina bowed proudly. "But seriously, I've been trying _so_ hard with Judy, but she just doesn't think I'm good enough for Peter. I mean, I know I shouldn't care what she thinks that much, but I do. She just digs and digs at me all the time, sometimes I just want to dig her damn eyes out!" The what were supposed to be calm words were pushed out forcefully, unleashing her not so nice pent up emotions towards her soon to be mother in law. Cringing slightly at the harshness of the tone, she ran a hand through her hair and smiled sheepishly at Trish's knowing expression.

"Go on Ally, tell me how you really feel. _Now_ all you have to do is tell that to Judy!" They both moved from the bed as Trish said this with a hint of sarcasm, having heard the popcorn in the microwave finish cooking. Relaxing onto the pillows they'd put on the floor, with Ally shamelessly clawing at the chocolate bowl, they settled down to watch their movie. But not before Ally turned to her friend.

" _Tell that to Judy_!" She mimicked through giggles with Trish joining in, "Now I _know_ you're crazy, chica." The other girl rolled her eyes before robbing a lemon sweet from the other bowl and not too gracefully shoving the woman next to her. Ally reciprocated immediately causing the crazy haired (and _much_ stronger) woman to attack. During their admittedly childish nudge match, the conversation concerning Judy triggered something in Trish's mind.

"Hey Ally, wasn't there something you asked me to remind you of, or something?" Both thought for a moment, before the answer sprung to Ally's head.

She nodded quickly and popped a little too much popcorn into her mouth before speaking, "Yeah, I have to leave slightly earlier tomorrow because I'm meeting Peter's best man. Austin, I think he's called? Yeah. He's really important to Peter and I can tell he wants us to get along, especially with my _oh so wonderful_ relationship with his mom."

"Oh cool, but why haven't you met him yet? If he's the best man," Trish's voice came out muffled due to the four or five sweets currently residing in her mouth.

"Man, this popcorn is good," Ally thought aloud before answering, "Peter said he's been on a trip for his job this whole past year. We started dating a year ago, while Austin was on the trip, so I never got to properly meet him. I've heard good things though." She slowly pulled an awkward piece of popcorn out of her hair (how had that gotten there?) as her friend spoke a final time while the beginning credits faded.

"Well, good luck," She sing-songed lightly, continuing to toss random popcorn into her oblivious best friend's hair, affectionately of course.

* * *

"Don't worry Petey, I'll be on my very best behaviour," A tall blond stated lightly, a small smirk gracing his features as his darker haired friend cringed at the embarrassing nickname.

"I'm serious Austin, don't scare her away or anything. I need you two to get along; her relationship with my mother is already kinda...well... strained?" Peter's words ended in the form of an unsure question, making the blond chuckle lightly. The brunet glared at him, "And no more _Petey_ , it makes me sound like a kid. She'll laugh at me."

"Relax, okay? I'm just kidding. Of course I'll be nice," He replied, patting his stressing friend on the back. "Besides, there are _so_ many more things she could laugh at you about, Petey." This earned him an eye roll and a playful shove from the groom, who lead him through the doors of their local coffee shop.

Austin took a deep, refreshed breath, having missed this place dearly during his year away. He looked around happily, resembling a toddler in a toy store, taking in the familiarity of his surroundings. Despite loving the feel of spontaneity and experiencing different things, he couldn't help but smile when he saw Lotta, his favourite waitress, standing at the counter as she always did.

"Dude, I'm gonna go find a table," Peter said before dashing off, while texting quietly on his phone, likely to a client at his workplace. The blond nodded absentmindedly before sauntering over to the short counter line. He was second from the front, with only one lady speaking to Lotta after giving her order. They spoke in an animated manner as the waitress prepared her hot chocolate, laughing at a bad pun the younger lady had given.

Deciding he would be waiting for a good few minutes, he whipped out his phone to call Dez, his best friend who he would be seeing the next day. After the long year apart, to say he'd missed his colourful, crazily eccentric friend would be a massive understatement. The mention of the name 'Ally' drew his attention back to the counter, before he could dial the ginger's number. He looked up properly then, remembering the endless phone calls with Peter about this Ally Dawson: their dating process, the I love you's and finally the wedding proposal.

He observed the woman in front of him intently as she continued her conversation, checking if she met all of Peter's descriptions. After all, there was more than one Ally in the world, meaning the woman here may not have been the one marrying one of his best friends. However, as he looked at her, he became more certain that she was; she had the curly brown hair, the cute petite stature, and the soft facial features Peter had described. 'Very pretty' he noted, beginning to feel excited for his friend.

"Ally! Over here," Peter shouted suddenly from a small table in the corner, snapping Austin out of his thoughts.

He watched as the brunette made her way over with a smile, confirming his previous thoughts. He grinned at the couple before greeting Lotta with a tight hug, recognizing the old woman's warm, peppermint smell. Her overall presence and overly smothering personality reminded him of his own mom, who resided miles away back in his hometown, Miami. Having moved to New York to work as a full time music producer, he didn't get to see his family as much as he'd wanted. So naturally, he gravitated towards the elderly woman; she reminded him of home.

"I really missed you, honey. Look at you, a big shot music producer, I'm so proud! How was your trip? Have you found yourself a nice girly yet, huh?" Austin chuckled at her curiosity as she made his usual coffee drink, fumbling wildly with the sugar bowl.

"It was nice, a ton of work but nice. I loved going to all those different places and seeing all sorts of unique things, that was pretty awesome. As for the girl thing, I'm still drawing a blank." He said, laughing fondly as she spilled a little coffee but helping her clean it up before continuing, "But hey, I'm only 25, I've got loads of time."

"Of course, hun, but a lovely young man like yourself should have girls lining up, right?" She suggested, causing him to let out an amused cough, "I have a some beautiful granddaughters, dear. Although one of them is getting married soon... But that still leaves 6 for you." Austin smiled lightly as she passed him his drink and rolled his eyes jokingly at the request. She was always trying to set him up, whether it was with the next random stranger or her own relatives. It never annoyed him though, he'd actually grown to the thought of being related to the waitress.

"I'll definitely weigh it as an option, Lotta." He payed her 10 dollars (the drink was $2.75), saying the change could be pay for her attempt at matchmaking. He thanked her quickly, although his reply came out rather muffled due to being pulled into another tight hug, before making his way over to Ally and Peter's table.

"Hey," He began in greeting, surprised to see the couple sitting in silence, rather than, well, coupley conversation. Peter was texting away on his work phone while his fiancé sat scribbling calmly in a large book. They both stood when they saw him, one looking a little more nervous than the other. The blond winked playfully at his friend as if to say 'good job' before turning to the brunette. "I'm Austin."

"Hi, nice to meet you, finally," She replied, cringing slightly at how shakily her words came out.

He reached out a large hand, which she shook quickly before they both sat down, with Austin facing the couple on the other side of the booth. Finally looking up from his phone, Peter launched into conversation, discussing current work affairs and the coming rehearsal dinner. Unfortunately boring the pants off the other two people present. However, while Austin made his boredom bluntly known through dramatic yawns (which earned a clock over the head from Peter), Ally listened intently. She smiled through her boredom and nodded appropriately, creating the illusion of interest. The blond smirked at this, already holding respect for the small woman.

 **o0o0o0o0o0o**

To say the last 7 and a half minutes were awkward would be a massive understatement, in Ally's opinion. She was still glowering slightly from her fiancé's hasty departure, which had left her sitting in an uncomfortable silence with his best friend. Who she'd met a grand total of 17 and a half minutes ago. She scribbled in her song writing book, annoyance clearly simmering off her, as Austin sipped his coffee a little cautiously. Peter had _conveniently_ gotten a call from his mother ten minutes prior demanding he come right away for a vital family meeting. Damn Judy. The woman _knew_ they were doing this now, she'd been reminded about a million times specifically to not interrupt. So to say Ally was pretty vexed was once again a _massive_ understatement.

After a few more minutes, she began to feel guilty, having neglected the very person she was supposed to be meeting. She rested her cheek on her palm sheepishly, before lifting her gaze to the blond, smiling lightly at his struggle with opening another sugar packet. "Austin." His head snapped up at her voice in surprise due to his concentration being heavily on the particularly stubborn sachet. "I, erm, I'm sorry for the way I'm acting. I'm just mad because Peter kept going on and on about this and now he's just up and left after 10 minutes!" She blew out a frustrated breath before continuing, "And I just _know_ Judy did this on purpose."

"Well, from what Petey's told me you and Judy are practically the best of friends," He replied sarcastically, mentally fist pumping when she snorted at the nickname. "Seriously, why doesn't she like you, did you do something to her?"

"I don't know. I don't _think_ so. Even if I did, I wouldn't have meant it," The brunette replied, resting her head on the table, dejectedly. "She just hates me because my family isn't mature, posh and rich like theirs. I'm Italian, so it's loud, caring and loads of food if you're talking about my family," She smiled fondly, remembering the frequent family gatherings and parties with all her eccentric relatives.

"That's pretty cool, I'd love big family like that. And don't let the PST bother you; she's hated me for years and I'm doing just great. Haven't lost any limbs or anything," He grinned, watching her face scrunch up in confusion. He continued before she questioned him, "PST. Plastic Surgery Troll. Me and Dez have called her that for years."

Ally let out an unladylike snort before throwing her head back in laughter. The 'troll' part of his sentence just got to her for some reason, likely because of the accuracy. She covered her face as her laughter continued, wiping tears from the corners of her eyes. The blond joined in after, albeit feeling a little guilty he was having this much fun without Peter being there with them. However, he shook the thought, knowing this was what his friend wanted in the first place; them to be getting along.

"Very clever and very accurate, I could get used to it," She said, admittedly feeling a lot calmer. He smirked at her remark and relaxed in his seat, before taking a long sip from his drink and swallowing contently. He was about to ask which complicated drink she'd ordered, when Lotta bounded over to their table. She held what looked like two muffins and crouched down to their sitting level with a sneaky grin.

"Do you guys want these muffins? I accidentally dropped them on the floor, but five second rule right? I practically picked em' up before they even touched the ground. I'm supposed to toss them out, but it just feels like such a waste," The elderly woman said quietly, a contagious smile playing on her lips. Austin and Ally glanced at each other for a second before turning to the woman.

"You know I wouldn't mind if it was 5 minutes Lotta, but do they have fruit in them?" The blond asked panicked, shivering involuntarily at the thought of fruit filled muffins. Blueberry muffins, upside down cake, it was all insane to him. He didn't understand why people would taint unhealthy food with...shudder... _healthy_ food. Ugh. Don't get him wrong, he did _like_ fruit, just not with cake. He'd had way too many bad experiences.

Lotta just laughed at his childishness. "Don't worry hun, Ally can have the blueberry muffin."

"Thanks Nonna," The brunette said with an amused smile as the muffin was placed in front of her. She took a large bite just as Austin gave her a confused look. She attempted to explain with a full mouth, gesturing wildly between herself and Lotta, which succeeded in confusing (but entertaining) the man even more. Swallowing finally, she continued. "Nonna means 'grandmother' in Italian. She's my grandma." The befuddled look fell from Austin's face and his mouth formed a 'o' before smiling and picking up his cake.

"That's awesome! Now I think about it you two do show a resemblance. Both very pretty." His words were followed by a charming smile, making the older woman swat his arm while the younger pretended to be focused on her muffin. Her lips subconsciously twitched upwards and she mentally slapped herself for the light blush that had formed on the tips of her ears (Yes, her ears).

"Alright, you guys are very welcome. I need to get back to work now," Lotta said, subtly raising a knowing eyebrow at her flustered granddaughter. They thanked her politely as she turned to walk away, before spinning back once more, "And Ally dear it's 10:25, aren't you supposed to be at work?" The words sunk in properly after a few more seconds and the petite girl sprung up, knocking her chair in the process. She ran a hand through her hair, gathering all her things at a rapid pace.

"Oh God! I'm late! It's was great meeting you Austin, I'll see you later," She glanced at him apologetically to which he casually smiled in understanding. "Bye Nonna." After hugging her grandmother tightly, she exited the coffee shop, with fumbling hands and a determined look on her face. Austin's eyes still followed her retreating figure, a mixture of sympathy and amusement playing on his lips. He looked away finally to see Lotta pursing her lips at him triumphantly.

"See, didn't I tell you I had some beautiful granddaughters?"

* * *

"So you liked her then?" Dez said, seated next to his blond best friend on the bright orange sofa in his living room. Austin had reunited with his red haired friend a few hours ago, telling him about his year away and recent meeting with the bride over some old fashioned video games. They were now immersed in a zombie blood bash as the ginger asked this, secretly trying to throw his best friend off his game.

"Yeah, I can see why Peter picked her," He replied casually, nudging his friend after killing one of his fighters with a bomb. This threw Dez off balance, resulting in him missing an enemy soldier and killing one of his own men. Austin snickered playfully as his friend wailed.

"Damn it Austin! That wasn't necessary, Jerry was one of my best men!" The ginger slouched childishly as Austin looked at him in disbelief.

"Well what was I supposed to do? Your precious Jerry was about to murder Austin Jr! Do you know how much of a tragedy that would've been?" Austin replied, dramatically dodging Dez's attempt at smacking him across the head. "Jeez, violence." He shook his head condescendingly making the ginger chuckle. The blond took advantage of his friend not paying attention and threw an atomic bomb into the enemy field, killing tens of zombies and most of Dez's camp.

Dez's eyes whipped back to the screen too late, "NOOOOOOO!" He shouted, reaching out a hand dramatically as the bomb exploded in slow motion. Sniggering could be heard in the background as Austin tried to keep his laughter contained. In a last attempt to prevent the damage, without thinking the skinnier man tossed his controller at the display. Both men winced as it slammed into the screen, knocking the already weak TV off it's stand and onto the luckily carpeted floor.

They sat in shocked silence for a few tense minutes before Austin spoke, "Dude. That was awesome."

"I know, right!" They high fived enthusiastically, reminding both of their middle school days when they'd first met. Dez smiled at his friend proudly before a dark realization entered his mind. "But dude, Trish is gonna kill me." He ran a hand through his hair worriedly before his friend replied.

"Trish? I thought you were dating Carrie." Dez shook his head before explaining.

"I am, Trish is Ally's best friend. We've all gotten to know each other over this past year. Trish and her boyfriend Jace got me and Carrie a TV for my birthday and she sure doesn't let me forget how expensive it was. She always brings up how she could've bought a dress or a pair of shoes instead of it, but out of the kindness of her heart she bought it for us. I bet Jace picked it; she probably would have given me socks or something." Austin smirked at the this, interested in what the feisty lady was like since she obviously had such a...well... _dominant_ effect on Dez.

"Oh cool. Man, I feel like I've missed so much this year," Austin mumbled in a casual but honest tone. Dez threw him a sympathetic glance.

"Eh, you didn't miss much, kid." It was now the ginger's turn to snicker as the blond cringed at the nickname.

"Two centimetres! You're _two_ centimetres taller than me and I'm older than you by 3 whole months," He chuckled, throwing his controller at the other man, who clutched his chest dramatically. "Stop calling me kid, you ass."

"Well at least _this_ ass has a girlfriend." Austin gave him a mock offended glare, before nodding as if to say 'touché'. "But seriously, did you actually meet any girls on the trip?" Dez asked curiously, rubbing his hands together. His shoulders sunk dejectedly, however, when his friend shook his head.

"I told you Dez, I'm embracing my singleness! I don't even want to settle down right now," He replied, trying to brush off the red head's knowing look.

"So what you're _saying_ is, either you didn't meet anyone you wanted or you failed at wooing the girls you _did_ want," Dez stated, not shocking the blond too much with his accuracy; they knew each other like the backs of their hands. He gave a sheepish grin before answering.

"Bit of both, honestly," He smiled, running a hand through his hair from habit and relaxing more into the comfy sofa as Dez gave a goofy grin.

"Well, you're in luck. I've heard Ally has some really cute cousins, probably your type too," Dez replied, patting his friend on the back before finally walking over to the fallen TV. Austin let out a chuckle, remembering his earlier encounter with Lotta and her matchmaking antics.

"I don't doubt you there, bro."

 **A/N: And that's the first part finished. Hope you guys liked it! This story originally started out as a one shot, but now I think it's gonna have four or five parts to it. Thank you for reading and I'll try and update soon, byeeeee :)**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own characters and the plot ;)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey Everyone ;) Thank you for all the lovely feedback. Your reviews, favs and follows are so encouraging to see. Also, thanks for sticking with me past the first chapter and please keep reading. This chap is pretty slow and kinda just a filler but I hope you guys enjoy it anyway.**

"Don't worry about it Pete, you don't have to do anything like that," Ally smiled into the phone as she continued her trip to work. A steady clicking of heels could be heard in the packed parking lot as the brunette made her way to the Ramone Records building, while awkwardly balancing her mobile between her ear and shoulder. Currently on the other side of the speaker was her fiancé, attempting to make up for his hasty exit the previous day.

"No I _want_ to, I'll send you some flowers, alright? What are those ones you like...erm...lavender was it?" He replied, making the woman let out an exasperated breath. She shook her head to say no, before remembering he couldn't see her. Mentally face palming, she giggled at her dim moment and pushed the phone closer to keep it from falling.

"It's really not necessary, Peter. And, I'm allergic to lavender. Don't you remember that time at the hospital?" It was silent for a moment on the other side as the man likely wracked his brain. She rolled her eyes in amusement; he was so good at remembering work related things, but couldn't recall the time she'd almost _died_ from a lavender attack. Well, maybe that was a little extreme. She hadn't almost died, just swelled up in weird (and highly uncomfortable for a doctor to examine) places. She shuddered at the memory before being snapped back into reality by Peter's voice.

"Oh, you're right! Sorry, I forgot. I'll get you some roses then..." He continued to discuss the gift, making her groan subconsciously. Honestly, she wasn't even a flower person.

"Okay... Thanks babe," She replied, trying to keep her hot chocolate and heavy bag up as she balanced her song book on an outspread elbow. A quiet 'You're welcome' was heard through the phone, then overtaken by a deep sigh. She narrowed her eyes in confusion, noticing the shift in his tone. "What? What's wrong?" She had reached the doors then and pushed through, beginning to approach the receptionist desk.

"Well, it's my mom." The 23 year old rolled her eyes at this, taking a frustrated breath as he continued. "She's been really stressed lately. That's why she wanted to talk to me yesterday," He finished a little nervously. She imagined him rubbing a hand over his face or tapping his foot as he often did when tense.

"Stressed? About what exactly?" She asked, halting in her place to hear him properly. She could hear the foot tapping.

"Erm... it's you. She thinks you don't like her, despite all the efforts she's made. I know you two aren't best friends, but... you could at least try to be a little nicer to her-"

" _I_ could try to be nicer!? ME?" She shouted through the phone, her face now reflecting anger. "How can you even say that! I've been nothing but civil with that woman but don't _ever_ think I'll just sit around and let her insult me when she tries to." She continued walking to the reception desk while ranting, receiving weird looks from a few colleagues and clients.

"Ally, you know that's not what I meant-"

"And what the heck do you mean _despite all the efforts she's made_? What efforts? She just looks down at me all the time. Ugh! You know what? I don't even feel like talking anymore. I'll see you at home," She finished with a disappointed shake of her head. Running a hand through her hair, she went to place her song book on the receptionist desk, wincing when it slammed onto the glass surface and knocked over a pile of forms. "Sorry Digsby."

The receptionist looked at her nervously as he recollected his papers from under her book, having witnessed the entirety of her frustrating conversation. He pushed his glasses up a little higher on his face and looked up anxiously, "T-That's okay, Ms Dawson. I-"

"No, it's not. I just completely messed up your desk. I'm sorry, sweetie," She apologized again, sending the younger man a sympathetic look. He nodded awkwardly making her simper; she found him so awkwardly cute, kinda like Leonard from the Big Bang Theory. He was 19 (but she swore he didn't look a day over 16 with his baby face), using the receptionist job to gain more work experience in college. Weirdly, his endearing and nerdy personality cheered her up every morning.

"Really, I-It's alright. B-By the way, Ms Dawson... Or should I call you Mrs Dawson ye-?"

"No, Ms is fine, Digsby. Not married yet," She interrupted, a little uneasily, still slightly struggling to let the whole marriage thing to sink in.

"O-Okay. I just wanted to t-tell you that you've got a meeting this morning," He replied quickly as the brunette paused from sipping her hot chocolate. She looked at him curiously.

"Who with? I don't remember having a meeting scheduled for today," She said, before beginning to gather up her belongings from the desk. She tried to hide her disappointment, having looked forward to a quiet and calm song writing session on her own that morning. Digsby spoke as she, with great difficulty, picked up her heavy work bag once more.

"E-Erm, one of the main music producers. M-Mr Moon I think he's called. He's been on a long work trip recently with some of our main clients visiting R-Ramone Record labels in our four feeder countries. He wants to speak to the newer workers who came this year, while he was away." He explained, causing her to nod and begin straightening out her clothes. She blew a curl out of her face, pouting childishly when is fell back a second later, before speaking.

"Alright, well, when is it?"

"E-Er, it started five minutes ago, Ms Dawson."

"What!? Oh God, okay...erm...which room?" The brunette asked, desperately rushing to gather up the rest of her belongings from Digsby's desk. She yelped after almost spilling the remaining contents of her drink, smiling sheepishly at the alarmed look on the younger man's face. After apologizing briefly, she shot Digsby a quick grin before turning. She was already halfway across the room, clumsily ambling with her things balanced in her arms, when he hurriedly shouted.

"Room H16!" He looked down rather awkwardly after, due to a few faces turning to look at him. She didn't blame them, it was probably the first time they'd ever heard the little man shout.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Ally proceeded quickly until she approached her small work room. A content smile formed on her lips as she entered, recognizing the familiar paper smell and seeing her petite grand piano in the corner. After walking over, she lifted a hand to run over the keys of the instrument lightly, momentarily distracting her from the hectic situation.

The harsh sound of low pitched keys resonating loudly after she'd leant down a little too far, snapped the woman back to reality. After dropping the remainder of her things carefully, the brunette scurried out of the room and began up the stairs.

Now Ally knew she was unfit, merely staying fairly thin due to her inherited good metabolism (from her mom, of course. No offense to Lester). However, losing her breath after 5 minutes of stair walking was a new record. And not in a good way. She rolled her eyes at her easily weakened state, mentally spurring herself along while glaring at the seemingly endless flights of stairs. She halted after another minute of walking, allowing her head to droop and her curls to fall limply in her eyes. She stayed like that for a while, silently wishing she hadn't eaten all that candy with Trish at the weekend, stopping finally when she heard someone jogging down the stairs.

It seemed they both looked up a little too late, as they slammed into each other pretty badly. The shorter of the two snapping her head up when her body came in contact with the other figure's, consequently hitting the top harshly against his chin. He groaned in discomfort as she stumbled back in a daze, forgetting she was at the edge of a flight of stairs. Luckily, a hand reached out to tug her arm back before she fell to her doom. Once again, a little overly dramatic there.

This time her head faced down for a whole other reason as a string of apologies flew from her mouth, paired with flailing hand gestures. She gulped, wishing...no... _praying_ that this guy wasn't a client. Or worse, her boss. Or even _worse_ , that grumpy man-woman (she can't say she was completely sure which) who always complained that she was way too perky for his/her liking. She didn't want to give him/her the satisfaction of having yet _another_ reason to moan at her. Hmm, maybe it was Judy in disguise...

"Ally?" She snapped her head up at this in confusion, breaking away from her thoughts.

"How do you know m- Wait, Austin? What are you doing here?" She questioned a little breathlessly, still slightly frazzled from their literal 'bump into each other'.

"I'm stalking you," He replied curtly, causing her to step back hesitantly before shaking her head and sending him a pointed look. He chuckled lightly. "And I work here." The man quickly picked up his bag and a few papers which had scattered during their collision, to which the woman sent him an apologetic smile and mumbled another quick 'sorry'. He shook his head at this nonchalantly. "It wasn't your fault, don't worry about it."

"Thanks. Erm, how's your chin?"

"Great. How's your head?"

"Grea- a little sore actually," She admitted sheepishly, trying to ignore the searing pain in her forehead. "You have a very hard chin... wow that sounded so weird, I'm just gonna shut up now," She trailed off with an awkward laugh, making him smile. It was silent for a second before the original confusion of what he was doing there in the first place once again filled her mind. "Wait, so you work here? Did you literally start yesterday because I'm sure I would have noticed you before."

Admittedly, he was good looking. _Very_ good looking. With his messy blonde hair, kind brown eyes and lean-muscular build. She'd been working at the record label for just under 8 months now and was sure she would have noticed him if he'd been there all that time (Looking the way he did). It was inevitable. Her inner thoughts resulted in an almost imaginary blush forming as she shook the them away. It felt practically foreign in her mind to think about another person's attractiveness in such a way since her relationship with Peter began. It made her feel a little guilty, although she had no real reason to be.

His answer pulled her from her thoughts. "I was away for a year, doing some work at other Ramone Records labels in other countries. This is my first day back, they gave me an extra few days to settle back down at home." Her mouth formed an 'o' and she nodded, feeling a little stupid she'd forgotten that he had been away; he'd told her that just the previous day. "By the way, do you know where room B17 is, they changed a few floors round while I was away... which is pretty stupid to tell you cause you probably already knew that," He finished, slightly embarrassed at his uncoordinated words. Luckily, she didn't seem to notice.

"B17? That's my office- Oh no... you're not one of the main producers are you?" She squeaked. He nodded, unsure where she was going with this. "Do you have a meeting right now... with a songwriter?" He nodded again, making her face palm with a tired laugh. "Is this songwriter a little late?"

"Yep, I'm on a tight schedule for today so I was just gonna pop into her room instea- oh," He smirked at her embarrassed look before crossing his arms and shaking his head at her, condescendingly. "Well, I can't say I pegged you as the reckless type, Mrs Sinclair, I'm utterly shocked and repulsed," He joked, causing her to giggle and roll her eyes. She stopped, however, at the second name he used.

"Mrs Sinclair? Not for another 4 more months, buddy," She said, a little relieved. Don't get her wrong, she loved her fiancé and definitely wanted to marry him, it was just his second name didn't really suit her. She was definitely a Dawson. "Huh, I forgot my second name was even gonna change at all, Ally Sinclair sounds kind of, well, odd. Don't you think?"

He shook his head to reassure her. "No, it sounds good. Better than Moon, huh?" He smiled, trying to keep the mood light. But she was too deep in thought, her thoughts drifted back to her conversation with Trish and the weight of the wedding began to fully form on her shoulders once again.

She ran a hand through her hair slowly, trying to tell herself it was normal to be scared about this kind of commitment. As if reading her mind, the blond spoke. "Don't think about it too much, Ally. You wouldn't have said yes to the poor sucker if you didn't want to marry him."

"Yeah," She replied quietly, forcing a small smile onto her face as if she was okay. She wasn't. It was silent between them for a while; the wedding proving to be a pretty tense subject. Ally, played with the tips of her hair then coughed awkwardly before finally speaking, her tone lighter once again as she changed the subject. "So, do you like music? You know, since you're a music producer. Or are you one of those workers that's just in it for the money?" She asked playfully, making a dorky money action with her hands.

He scoffed dramatically. "Like music? I practically breathe music, _Dawson_." His emphasis on her current second name made her smile gratefully before they launched into a full blown music conversation.

Although she snorted at his feigned cocky attitude, the brunette couldn't help but feel overjoyed at finding someone who appreciated and talked about music as much as she did; it usually bored everyone else and although Peter liked songs, he hardly saw the reason for her obsession with the art. While beginning back down the stairs with him, she responded confidently.

"Well that's a relief, _Moon_ , because so do I."

* * *

"Oh _yeah_ , Dez told me he was a total music freak like you! I remember now," Trish exclaimed proudly albeit breathlessly, causing Ally shake her head with an offended chuckle.

"If I... wasn't so tired from... running, I would totally... glare at you right now," She replied tiredly while wiping a sheet of sweat from her head. They'd been jogging for about half an hour after the bride's pleads to try and get fitter for the big day were finally succumbed to by the lazy Latina. Ally suggested going to one of her favourite parks to jog, dragging her best friend with her. They had been chatting about work with Ally bringing up her encounter with the best man and her excitement over their shared love for music. "We're not music freaks, per se, we just happen to enjoy it... obsessively. That's all."

They finally stopped at a nearby tree, the slightly taller of the two panting dramatically while the other looked on in amusement. Ally took a long swig of her now lukewarm drink, before speaking.

"How? How are you not... tired?" She asked, still waiting for her breathing to steady once more.

Trish simply smirked before answering. "Hate to break it to you, Chica, but your running is the same pace as my walking. I literally just walked all the way here, pretty slowly too." Ally gaped at this as her friend let out a laugh.

"So _that's_ why that old lady on the scooter passed us before!" She exclaimed, face palming with embarrassment before leaning back against the large tree. Trish patted her on the back, robotically, an obvious smirk still playing on her lips.

"There there. There there. Ther-" She began insultingly, stopping when a small splash of water hit her in the face. The Latina gasped and jumped back in shock, narrowing her eyes menacingly when she heard loud giggling coming from the other woman. Ally clutched her stomach in laughter as Trish shook her head at her childish manner. "Yeah, you laugh now, but wait till you wake up to a bucket of freezing cold water-"

"Please, like you would ever wake up earlier than me just to pull a prank, Trish. We all know you're not up before 8:00am," Ally interrupted with a smile, sending her friend a knowing look at which Trish rolled her eyes mockingly.

"Touché."

"Come on, we should probably start running again. Well, _walking_ in your case, huh?" The brunette said while swiping some hair out of her face and pushing herself off the tree. Her friend, in contrast, shook her head childishly and slid down until she was seated cross legged on the grass. Ally placed her hands on her hips in confusion. "But I thought you weren't tired? Don't you wanna finish the jog?

"Come on Ally, when do I wanna finish anything?" Trish asked, not so gently jerking Ally down to sit next to her. She smiled widely at her friend's mock glare before speaking again. "Now please tell me why you're even jogging right now. Your body's completely fine." After pausing for a few seconds to wait for a response, Trish continued, an idea entering her mind. "Wait, I know why you want to get fit; is it for the wedding night? Are you planning to go all Fifty shades of Grey or somethi-"

"TRISH!" Ally exclaimed, covering her face in embarrassment as she felt her cheeks flush. "That's not it at all!" She found herself laughing in disbelief at the Latina's suggestion. The other woman didn't seem phased and narrowed her eyes in suspicion even more, enjoying this teasing a little too much to let it go that easily.

"Are you _sure_? Because if you _did_ , you know I'd have to know everything right?" She asked with a smirk, laughing loudly when Ally's face flushed pink once again. "Kidding! I wouldn't want to know _everything_. If you know what I mean, chica." The other brunette cringed and covered her ears childishly as Trish continued, finally taking advantage of her friend stopping by trying to change the subject.

"Okay, moving on...erm...are we still on for bridesmaid dress shopping next month?"

"Do I still look fantastic in leopard print?"

"I'll take that as a yes then," Ally smiled in reply with an eye roll. "Thank God you still are. I need you for moral support since Judy insisted on coming too." Trish's eyes widened in shock and she crossed her arms in frustration. Her actions were met with a sheepish smile from her friend. "I know I know, I couldn't stop her."

"Fine, just make sure she doesn't come when you're getting your wedding dress. That's just for you and your _own_ mom. When is Mrs Dawson flying out to New York anyway?" Ally ran a hand through her hair in thought before answering Trish's question, excitement sparkling in her brown eyes.

"Definitely a month before the wedding, so three months from now, with the rest of the family," She replied, making the Latina's eyes widen once again, this time in surprise.

"When you say the rest of your family... do you actually mean the _rest_ of your family? Because I've known you since, well forever, and even _I've_ never met all your family. It's pretty big right? And didn't you say a few of them are flying over from Italy?" Trish asked, smiling eagerly for Ally, who she knew always loved her whole family together.

"Not all of them, unfortunately, but quite a few. Like my other Nonna and a few great aunts. I'm super excited but... I guess I'm pretty nervous too. I don't really expect smooth sailing when all of my family meet Peter's; we're so different." She said, bluntly as her friend nodded in agreement.

"So basically, your saying you don't want them to kill each other?" Trish asked jokingly, although there was actual worry behind her words. The other brunette laughed a little uneasily.

"Oh no, the killing is pretty much inevitable. All we can do is try to minimize the damage before the wedding." Ally smiled with a nonchalant shrug. "But lets be honest, my grandma Lotta will totally wipe the floor with Judy when the time comes." They both giggled at the image of the kind old woman aggressively harming the snotty mother in law to be. It was the most unusual thing they'd imagined in a while, honestly.

"Yep, I could definitely see that happening."

* * *

The time read 9:00pm when Ally returned home, finally dropping her heavy bag of belongings onto the floor the second the door slammed. She let out a relieved breath and stretched her body slowly, before making her way to the small apartment kitchen. This was the usual routine: dropping her things, making anything sweet to snack on and watching TV (preferably Friends) or reading while waiting for Peter to get home.

A large smile subconsciously grew on her lips as she reached for a half eaten tub of ice cream (fruity mint swirl, of course. Every other flavour was practically forbidden), licking her lips and grabbing her honorary ice cream spatula. A flash of red caught her eye as she started to leave the room, causing her to swerve and face the counter once again. Her eyes widened in shock at the large bunch of red roses on the counter; she'd completely forgotten about the earlier argument with her fiancé due to the surprise encounter with Austin.

Blushing lightly, a contagious grin spread on her face. She observed the flowers for a few more seconds before taking out a small piece of paper which was poking from the heads of the roses.

 _To Ally-Gator_

 _Sorry again about our argument, I'll try and speak to Mother. I h_ _ope you like these roses (I know you love flowers so much)._ _I'm going to be late from work again today. I just need to sort some stuff out, don't worry._

 _By the way, If you're wondering why this isn't in my handwriting, it's because it isn't. I didn't have time to send this from the office so I asked Austin to do it for me. I'm sorry. But I bought the roses and I told him what to write over the phone, so hopefully it's cool. Oh, and Dez told me you're not that much of a flower person (crazy right? Of course you are) so Austin pestered me into getting you some chocolates too, just in case you were mad I didn't actually write this._

 _You're welcome. See you soon._

 _From Peter (And written by Austin in his best handwriting as you can probably tell, you're also welcome)_

Ally lowered her gaze to the large box of chocolates lying next to the flowers, a little surprised she hadn't noticed them before. She simpered lightly at the blond's near chicken scratch hand writing, admittedly (and quite weirdly) finding it cute and endearing. After eagerly seizing the box she relaxed back onto a couch, grateful and very relieved that Austin and Dez, unlike her fiancé, were a lot more observant and opted for the chocolate option.

Having grown used to Peter's late nights at work, she set down the note easily and prepared for another night of Pretty Little Liars. Lonely...Yes, but honestly that night she preferred to be thinking about someone else's dramatic life rather than her own.

 **A/N: Oh dear, sorry this chapter is so...ugh. There will be A LOT more Austin and Ally togetherness in the next chap so please keep reading. It'll be waaaay cuter than this I promise. I'll try and update soon and feedback would be amazing. Thanks again for reading ;)**

 **BTW I don't even watch PLL, it's just some of my friends (practically all of them) have this weird obsession with it and I feel it could be one of Ally's guilty pleasures. If any of you watch the show please tell me what all the fuss is about.**

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and my own characters :)**


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